What Kind of Jerk Would I Be?
by thedancingcrown
Summary: Twice Wally remembered Valentine's Day, and the four times he forgot. Rated T for safety and because I'm paranoid... Spitfire!
1. After Midnight

**SOUTH AFRICA**

**February 14, 00:33 SAST**

**Happy Valentine's Day!**

* * *

**PALO ALTO**

**February 14, 00:03 PST**

**_Team Year Six_**

Bruce was curled up into a furry ball of sleepiness when Wally came home. That the dog was white instead of black like a bat had been lol-worthy irony in Wally's opinion when they decided to name him – until Dick pointed out Bruce Wayne was also Gotham's _White_ Knight. Way to ruin his fun.

"How'd it go?" Artemis's voice came from the next room when she heard him sit down at the kitchen table.

Wally rubbed at the kink in his neck. "Argh, it didn't," he said as he did so. "We talked. He wouldn't hear us," thoroughly defeated, Wally put his gloved hands to his face. "Ugh, on top of that, my Vietnamese Lit paper is still due at 8 AM."

Artemis had entered the room, settling her hand on his shoulder as she rounded his chair from behind and came to stand on his other side. He peered up at her, "…I don't suppose I could copy off yours?"

He didn't really expect her to say yes, of course, but… it was worth a try.

She gave a quiet, throaty little laugh that made him smile, as she settled her arm comfortably around his shoulders and rested her other hand on her wrist, successfully encasing him.

She planted a peck on his cheek. "Not a chance."

Wally could only smile, and, as he watched her dark grey eyes, he finally, _finally_, remembered something.

"Hey," he said quietly. "It's after midnight. Happy Valentine's Day, Artemis."

She pulled back, her smile growing wider. "You remembered," she said, surprised, but apparently elated.

"_Come on_," he said, watching her pull away from him. "What kind of jerk would I be if I forgot Valentine's Day? …For the fifth year in a row," he added.

"Well, I remembered, too," Artemis said as she made her way the few steps to their fridge and took hold of the handle. "I got you your favourite food," she pulled open the door, leaning against the side of it with one hand on her hip. "_Everything_."

And she wasn't even kidding, either.

Bowls, containers, paper bags, bottles, half a ham, a _whole_ turkey even – _Man, what did I do to deserve you again?_

Eyes wide, Wally stared at the fridge, a somewhat less goofy grin than what he'd patented some five years ago plastered on his face.

"Babe. You rock."

He got to his feet at once and walked over to her.

Artemis wrapped her arms around his neck and let him hold her, but only for a moment before she said, "You're still worried about Roy."

He wasn't sure it was even a question, she knew him that well.

Of course he was all kinds of excited about his Valentine's Day gift, but his reaction had, admittedly, been a little more subdued than usual.

She wasn't wrong of course. Roy still weighed heavy on his mind – if neither he nor Dick, and not even Ollie or _Dinah_ could have gotten through to him, then…who was left?

Who was left who could _actually_ reach their old friend and help him make peace with all of this?

Wally, though it _pained_ him to do so, didn't think there was anyone left.

"He's lost, Babe," Wally replied sadly. "Alone. The guy just won't let anyone in…"

* * *

**A/N: Sorry the first one is just a rewrite of Season 2's Episode 4, but...meh. Couldn't really be helped. I'm doing these in different chapters, but they're really long, actually. I'll be updating all throughout the day. It had been my plan all along, but now I ****_have_**** to do it that way, because some of the chapters aren't finished yet... ^^;**

**In any case, thanks for reading and please feel free to review! 3**


	2. Remind Me To Call

**SOUTH AFRICA**

**February 14, 00:51 SAST**

**One more so soon after the previous, because this is where the real fun starts. XP**

* * *

**CENTRAL CITY**

**February 14, 00:16 CST**

**_Team Year Two_**

Artemis flew past the moon on an old-fashioned broomstick, black cape swishing. She wiggled her nose this way and that, blowing him kisses, before Wally awoke to the sound of the _Bewitched_ theme song half muffled by his pillow.

He blinked blearily just as the song cut off, only to start up for the sixteenth time a second later.

Groaning, Wally reached under his pillow and pulled out his singing phone, switching off the alarm with the press of a button. His reminder still blinked on-screen though: _Valentine's Day, dude. DON'T forget._

"Right," Wally muttered, pressing 'Dismiss' and squinting at the date and time through the bright light of the screen. "Not forgetting…" he flopped back down to his pillow and dozed off, never sending Artemis a message.

Seven and a half hours later Artemis was beating him awake with her broomstick, and Wally rolled restlessly out of bed as he fought to come awake. "Ow…"

"Breakfast, Wally," his mother said brightly, peeking into the room. "…What are you doing on the floor?"

"Nothing," Wally mumbled, rubbing sleep from his eyes. "Just…hanging out."

XoXoXoX

**CENTRAL CITY**

**February 14, 13:10 CST**

**_Team Year Two_**

Wally West was hungrily stuffing food in his mouth during second break, pointedly ignoring the fact it was icky-looking slop that tasted like cardboard, when a group of girls entered the cafeteria, all dressed in pink.

One of them, Jasmine, with her thick dark hair and long legs, was carrying a heart-covered box under her arm. "Valentine's Dance tickets over here!" she called through the cafeteria chatter, and most of the students quieted down to listen. "We still have about sixteen left."

Wally's head whipped up and he swallowed fast. Nearly choking, he hopped off his seat, dismayed by the crowd of kids that had already gathered around Jasmine and her friends.

_Duuuudes, don't take them all…_

He patted his pockets in the hope that he had some more change in there somewhere, as he made his way over, annoyed that he couldn't just speed through the throng and be the first in line.

He'd been meaning to buy them tickets since the week before, but Valentine's wasn't on the forefront of Wally's mind in general – being Kid Flash was, mainly. That and Artemis. Of course. And so he'd forgotten.

He'd been planning to take her to the dance at his school – show her off a little, at last, he had to admit. He'd been meaning to their first Valentine's, but Artemis wasn't big on dances, or the actual dancing for that matter – not in crowded places with strangers, anyway – but it was their last year in high school, and heprobably wasn't getting another chance like this. And even if he would, he didn't know that – so, better safe than sorry.

The dance seemed like the perfect idea. He was going to get her a nice dress and shoes, too, and surprise her. Well, assuming he could still get a ticket.

Otherwise…dinner and a movie?

Wally hadn't spoken to Artemis all day. He'd fervently _meant_ to message her the _instant_ it became Valentine's Day – at least, that had been his intentions the night before – only to completely forget and go back to sleep after his alarm had belatedly woken him up.

He'd taken no notice of the date until halfway to school, when they started a twenty minute love song session "for all you lovebirds out there" over the radio.

But, after some reflection, Wally had concluded he didn't want to wish Artemis a happy Valentine's Day and ask her to "be his" over the phone or in a 145 character message. Instead, he wanted to tell her face to face.

He was a big romancer after all, all the girls knew it, and so he couldn't be anything less with his own girl, could he?

At last managing to squeeze past a couple of learners, Wally landed in front of Jasmine and her friends. She was putting the lid back onto the box, and, in a moment of panic, Wally practically yelled at her as he blurted desperately, "Two, please!"

Jasmine recoiled, her eyes wide and blinking at him, "Er…"

Her blonde friend snatched the box out of her hands then, though, giving Wally an icy glare as she chided, "Sorry, _Wall-man_," she scowled, using the nickname he'd sort of given himself and regrettably used at school only the once. Once was once too many. "We're all out. You and your _infamous_ girlfriend will just have to stay home," sneering at him she hooked her arm through Jasmine's and dragged the dark haired girl after her, leaving Wally with a scowl on his face. What's-her-name was only annoyed with him because he wasn't dating Jasmine, and they were convinced Artemis didn't exist since no one had ever seen her.

Shoulders slumped, Wally sighed. Apparently Artemis would just have to stay a mythical figure, then.

_Hang on, there's always prom,_ he remembered suddenly, lightening up.

But, for Valentine's – dinner and a movie after all, then.

XoXoXoX

**CENTRAL CITY**

**February 14, 15:48 CST**

**_Team Year Two_**

Finally home, Wally jogged up the pathway to his front door, the gaudy yellow school bus starting up the street after its brief pause to let him off.

"Hey, Mom!" he called a greeting despite not knowing exactly where in the house his mom was, but not particularly bothering to care either, as he dropped his backpack in the hallway and made for the phone.

He'd forgotten his cell phone at home that morning, and had fidgeted on the bus all the way home, chanting in his head a reminder to _"Call Artemis, call Artemis, call Artemis"_ before he managed to forget that, too.

That it was Valentine's hadn't really stuck with him despite the shocking pinks and hearts and blown kisses and cuddling that had been going on around school. Rather, little things had jogged his memory – like Jasmine and the box of tickets, for example. One of his classmates had asked him if he'd gotten a Valentine's Day card – or was he waiting on one from his 'girlfriend', ha-ha – just as Wally had stepped on the bus, reminding him he needed to _actually _call Artemis and set up the dinner and a movie date if he wanted one.

He'd just reached the phone, hand poised to snatch it off the hook, when it started ringing.

"Remind me to call Artemis," he said, by way of hello.

"It's going to have to wait, kiddo," his Uncle Barry's voice came through the receiver, and Wally was suddenly glad it hadn't been some stranger calling. "The Rogues are having a party and," a quick pause, like Uncle Barry's sentence got cut off for a moment as he concentrated on something else, "I could use a hand."

"You've got two," Wally said at once, hanging up and speeding off to his bedroom. Kid Flash emerged in a blur of yellow and red as he sped off, calling to his mom, wherever she was, "Got to go, Mom – superhero stuff!" and he was out the back door, speeding down the street without pause.

Mary West wandered into the hallway from the kitchen, drying her hands on her apron. She paused, raising an eyebrow at the empty hall. "…Wally…?"

XoXoXoX

**CENTRAL CITY**

**February 14, 21:12 CST**

**_Team Year Two_**

Aching, exhausted, stuffed at least, and not caring in the slightest that with his hair still wet it was going to be tangled and standing in all kinds of directions in the morning, Wally fell down on his bed and sighed blissfully.

Captain Cold and the Rogues had set a complicated, elaborate and confusing plan in motion that afternoon to capture and potentially unmask the Flash and his partner. They'd ended up literally chasing wild geese at one point, and spent the entire afternoon well into the night running around – chasing the Rogues, disabling bombs, speeding civilians to safety, until, finally, they'd tripped up the Rogues and caught them one by one in traps of their own making.

Wally was ecstatic to be at home and able to go to sleep at last. However, as he drifted into a dream where Artemis scowled at him, wiggled her nose and turned him into an asparagus, Wally couldn't help but think he'd forgotten something.

* * *

**A/N: Thanks for reading! I'll update in about seven hours...right now, I need to sleep... .**


	3. While You Were Sleeping

**SOUTH AFRICA**

**February 14, 07:40 SAST**

**Thanks to Mysty Star and dylaneastin for the follows! Glad you want to read more :) Enjoy.**

* * *

**PALO ALTO**

**February 12, 08:57 PST**

**_Team Year Three_**

Wally hobbled into the lecture hall with a crutch under each arm and a pretty brunet carrying his backpack at his side.

"So, how long will it have to stay on?"

Wally shrugged, pouting down at his cast-encased ankle. "Not sure…" It hadn't been that bad of a break, for one thing, but also, with his relatively accelerated healing, it was sometimes hard to tell. He was by no means The Flash, but he wasn't the average normal-healing person, either.

"I'll tell you this, though," he said, as he sunk laboriously into his seat at the front of the hall. The girl dropped his bag beside his table and smiled at him. He kind of wished she wouldn't, though, because it made her look scary. "I already can't wait."

She giggled, sounding like such a _girl_, and was about to say something else when their lecturer entered the room. Wally gave a grateful smile and mouthed a thank you that she'd carried his bag as she grinned at him again and skipped off to her seat.

Pulling a pen and paper from his backpack, Wally sat a little straighter in his seat, taking notes as the lecture began.

At the top of the page he started with the date—

_Tuesday, 11 February 2013._

XoXoXoX

**PALO ALTO**

**February 13, 11:30 PST**

**_Team Year Three_**

Wally turned the doorknob with his free hand, only to have it stuck halfway around so he had to start over again. Twisted open all the way, the door still deserved a hard thud from his shoulder before it swung open and he stumbled inside.

Sitting by the desk in the corner, Wally's roommate idly leaned back in his chair and glanced at his redheaded friend with an amused expression. "You always travel that light?" the jock inquired, and Wally scowled at him.

"Ha. Ha," the speedster said mirthlessly, kicking the door shut with his crutch and sauntering over to his bed where he dumped his baggage – an armload of books he'd been holding onto awkwardly, his nearly soaked raincoat and equally wet backpack, and his pair of crutches as well, before he fell face first onto his bed and sighed.

"I don't ever want to get up again…"

"Don't you still have classes later on?"

Wally groaned, lifting his head to scowl some more at his college friend, "Vic, you're ruining my good mood."

"_That_ is good?" Victor chuckled heartily at Wally's expense, souring his mood even more. Man, it _sucked_ having a broken ankle.

The redhead pushed himself off the bed, shouldering his backpack and gathering his crutches again.

"You doing anything nice for that girl of yours on Valentine's?" Victor asked, busying himself with the football in his hands, twirling it around, throwing it from one hand to the other. Wally noticed he was also staring absently at his computer screen – the dude had an essay to write, but it was apparently going _very_ slowly.

"People are still doing Valentine's then?" Wally replied, his mood infinitely better at the thought of Artemis, and infinitely worse at the prospect of _Valentine's Day_. The previous year had not been excellent.

Victor chuckled, "I know what you mean," he said. "What's the point of it anyway, right? If you get dumped, you've spent all that money on a girl who's going to burn all your V-day gifts and poke a voodoo doll in your image with a needle all day," he scratched at the back of his head.

Wally frowned, "You watch too many movies," he commented, and then blanched, "And also – Artemis is _not_ going to dump me. Or burn any of her gifts," _Mostly because she doesn't have any of those…_ he didn't add.

Vic shook his head, looking skeptical, "How serious are you and this girl, anyway?" he asked with a raised eyebrow. Wally shifted his crutches, feeling an itch growing on the tip of his nose.

"We're _serious_," he insisted. "We've even been thinking about getting a place together. So I won't have to look at your pathetic face anymore. And also, because your feet stink."

Victor laughed, as Wally had intended, and threw his football with a strong arm at the speedster.

Instinctively, he caught it, dropping his crutches as he did so, miraculously keeping his one-footed balance.

"Nice catch, Track-and-field," Victor grinned at him, getting up from his desk chair to retrieve Wally's crutches for him.

"I have my moments," the speedster said smugly.

"No kidding," Victor rolled his eyes, returning to his seat with his football in hand.

"Anyway," Wally shrugged, turning to the door.

"Where you going now – you just got here."

"I have a test at noon," Wally replied.

Victor whistled sympathetically, "That's in…like sixteen minutes."

"I'll make it," Wally said, feeling only half as confident as he sounded, before he forced open the door and shuffled out into the hallway.

Since it was only Wally's second day with his foot in the cast, it was not enough time for it to have healed enough that he could comfortably manage a somewhat disfigured jog at a subtly accelerated speed. Despite the fact, he _did_ make it after all, so far as the lecturer was concerned – but that was only because _she_ was late.

Wally scrawled the date in the top right-hand corner of his page, his thoughts speeding through a mind palace of information, trying to find the physics room—

_12 February 2013._

XoXoXoX

**PALO ALTO**

**February 13, 15:16 PST**

**_Team Year Three_**

"So? The test, how'd it go?" Victor asked, as Wally hopped into their room several hours later, looking more sullen than when he'd left.

"It didn't," Wally moaned. "I'm all confused…"

Victor raised an eyebrow at the redhead, who dropped his bag unceremoniously to the floor; his crutches too, as he flopped onto his bed in much the same manner as he'd done before.

"Er…come again?"

"I had the dates mixed up," Wally explained into his pillow, sounding muffled, but still understandable. "Apparently it's the thirteenth."

"Oh. Well, yeah…" Victor said, nodding understandingly. "So…when's your test then?"

"Yesterday."

Victor cringed, sucking in air through his teeth, "Ouch, man."

"Yeah," Wally sniffled.

"Guess that's what happens when you spend an entire day in the hospital…"

"…Yeah…"

XoXoXoX

**MOUNT JUSTICE**

**February 14, 18:59 EST**

**_Team Year Three_**

**_Recognized: Kid Flash, B03._**

Wally materialized in the mission briefing room of the cave, crutches and all, and made a beeline for the kitchen when he didn't see any of his teammates – or his girlfriend – around.

They weren't in the common area though, either, and Wally surmised Bats had probably sent them off already. Being incapacitated like he was, the speedster couldn't very well join them on their missions. It sucked. Royally.

But, at least he could use the time to catch up on his college work. Juggling the superhero gig with being a – somewhat – mature, responsible student was proving more difficult than Wally would have guessed. He was almost grateful to Bane for breaking his ankle and handing him all this time.

_Almost._

Stacking more meat and tomatoes onto his sandwich, Wally found himself pondering not quite for the first time, what life would be like if he wasn't being a hero after all.

_Stupid thought, Wall-man… Being Kid Flash is the best gig you could ever have asked for. Not that you _asked_, per se, but…_

With a shrug, clinging to the corner of his sandwich while he occupied his hands with manoeuvring his crutches, Wally made his way to a couch and flopped down.

It was great being free of missions and having all this extra time to catch up, keep up and actually _do_ some work he, oddly, hadn't had time for the past couple of weeks, if only he'd get off his lazy butt and actually do it.

Since he shared a dorm room with Victor and half the football team when the jock felt like it, it was hard to superspeed his way through coursework like he'd done homework in high school. Evening missions turning into late nights or early mornings out, had him feeling more beat than he'd ever been before, and behind on his self-studies to boot.

This was the perfect opportunity to catch up. However, at the moment, Wally's cast was itchy, his stomach was full, and he was still feeling deflated over yesterday's missed test. Or…was that the day before yesterday?

To top off his sullen mood, he hadn't seen Artemis _all day_. She'd texted him to cancel some appointment Wally couldn't remember they even _had_, anyway, saying she was sorry a million times, but it was mission related and couldn't be helped. She promised to make it up to him, and Wally, not in the mood to spend the rest of his afternoon with Mister Victory football jock who still desperately wanted help on his essay, had said he'd just meet Arty in the cave after their mission.

He probably should have brought some work to do in hindsight, after all, though…

_Too late now…_ Wally stretched his arms, yawned so his jaw cracked, and settled more comfortably against the couch's cushions. He shut his eyes, intent on a nap. Artemis would probably be back by the time he woke up.

When Wally did wake up, bleary-eyed and yawning, it was Dick he found, at the end of the couch next to his plaster-covered foot, a marker in his hand.

"Dude," Wally mumbled, propping himself upright with his arms and raising an eyebrow at the sixteen year old.

"I'm decorating," the teen shrugged, pointing at Wally's cast with the marker. The Boy Wonder had been doodling black bats all over it.

"_Duuuude_," Wally moaned, and glared at his friend.

"Wha-at?" Dick chuckled, stretching the word through his laughter. "You know you're a fan," he stuck out his tongue.

"You're too old for this," Wally muttered, reaching over swiftly to snatch the marker from Dick's hand where the boy had pressed it against Wally's cast again, having ignored his friend's glare completely.

But, getting a better look at his cast, and, mostly more awake now, Wally paused at the sight of bright pink writing. Artemis's handwriting.

Ignoring Dick's indignant _"Dude,"_ Wally moved his leg to get a better look. His lips moved soundlessly as he read—

_Happy Valentine's Day_

"It's Valentine's Day?!" Wally exclaimed, feeling mortified at having forgotten – _again_.

Dick, ever the little troll, laughed at him, "You forgot? _Again?_" he ignored Wally's scowl – if he even saw it. It was hard to tell with him wearing sunglasses. "Geez, I wonder why Arty keeps up with you, dude."

"Mind your own batwings," Wally snapped, shoving the younger boy roughly by the shoulder.

Dick just laughed, checking his watch as he did so. "Technically, it _was_ Valentine's Day."

Wally groaned, and lay back down. He sighed hopelessly and Dick took the opportunity to steal back the marker and return to his doodling, drawing bird-like shapes this time.

"Don't sweat it, Wally," he said with an encouraging smile, swapping his black marker for a blue one instead. "Maybe you'll remember next year."

Wally shrugged, sighed, and, still tired, shut his eyes and went back to sleep.

* * *

**A/N: And now I have college to get to... Enjoy your day everyone! **


	4. Happy Valentine's Day Cookies

**SOUTH AFRICA**

**February 14, 15:16 SAST**

**I'm supposed to fetch my mom from work in like ****_five_**** minutes, so this is a speedy copy-n-paste... XP**

* * *

**MOUNT JUSTICE**

**February 14, 17:16 EST**

**_Team Year Four_**

Dick watched as Artemis took the last batch out of the oven. Biting her bottom lip, watching the tray somewhat apprehensively, he thought, she set it down on the counter.

Dick, leaning with his crossed arms on the counter, one leg tucked under him where he sat on a stool, took an experimental whiff.

Artemis watched him expectantly, raising her eyebrows when he finally looked over at her.

"Well…" he said carefully. "They don't smell _too_ burnt," he ventured with a half-hearted smile.

Artemis groaned, shoulders slumping a little, her thick lips frowning as she glanced over to a pile of baked un-goodness stacked onto a plate in the corner.

The previous…couple of hundred, batches hadn't turned out excitingly well.

"Maybe they taste better than they look," Dick suggested with half a shrug, pointedly not looking at Artemis in case she scowled at him for that, though he hadn't even added 'this time', before he reached over with one hand for a cookie.

She slapped him before he could make it though, and when he looked up at her he found she'd pulled off the oven mitts and apron, was dropping them discreetly onto the floor, her eyes on something past the ex-Boy Wonder's head.

Footsteps met his ears then, and Dick quickly sat comfortably back like he'd never meant to test one of his best friend's cookies, resting his chin in one hand while he was at it.

He heard Artemis mutter, "They'll just have to do," under her breath, and he shot her a warm, encouraging smile.

She scowled at him instead of returning it, "Shouldn't you _leave_?" she hissed quietly.

"I'm not missing this," he replied in the same whispered tone, unsuccessful in taming a wide grin.

She rolled her eyes.

He wiped the look from his face the moment Wally slid into a stool to his right though, leaning against the counter with his back half turned to Artemis. It was more Wally's appearance that had caused Dick's grin to vanish, though, than the need to hide the surprise (which, despite being _Wally_, the speedster hadn't noticed yet).

"Dude," Dick said. "You look awful."

Wally, his head tilted toward his shoulder, eyes half lidded, nodded feebly, "I _feel_ awful," his friend droned, and Dick shared a glance with Artemis. Wally's hair was dishevelled – heavy on the dis – his open short-sleeved shirt pulled on askew over the white long-sleeved one, and Dick noticed his shoelaces were untied.

"What happened?" Artemis asked, concerned, weaving her long-nailed fingers through the ginger's hair. Wally's head came up at once, a smile creeping onto his face.

"Babe," he said wistfully, turning to look at her over his shoulder, grinning goofily.

He'd sped off his stool and was at her side in a matter of seconds, one hand around her waist, his lips planting a kiss on her cheek.

Dick politely spied.

"I didn't even see you there," Wally confessed, and then his eyes finally fell on the cookies in the tray. "Oh! Cookies!"

He'd hardly _looked_ at them before he swiped one off the tray, never mind they probably hadn't properly cooled off yet, and sped back to his seat looking decidedly chirpier than when he'd entered the room.

"So, where is M'gann anyway?" Wally asked, oblivious to the fact he'd never even answered Artemis's question. "Leaving her delectable goodies alone with _you two_," he teased, giving them each a pointed grin. Then he popped the cookie whole into his mouth.

Dick wasn't sure which expression to feature. Some sympathy for his best friend's over-zealous cookie eating habits, because he couldn't imagine that tasting much better than any of the previous attempts. There was also sympathy at what he'd said.

Dick couldn't help his visible wince at Wally's assumption of M'gann, and he hadn't missed the way Artemis's lips gathered in one corner of her mouth as she frowned.

There was also the desire to shake his head and roll his eyes at what Wally had said, too – was the speedster _really_ that oblivious?

"Gah!" the redhead exclaimed several supersped chews later, clapping a hand over his mouth, his eyes shut tight and his nose wrinkled unpleasantly. He swallowed hard and lowered his hand, shuddering.

"Megs is obviously trying a new recipe," he coughed a little, cringing. "It's not really working."

"_Megs_," Artemis said tightly, making Dick flinch. _Oh boy._

"Yeah," Wally said easily and Dick concluded he really _was_ that oblivious, not recognizing his girlfriend's tone _at all_. "Megs, Megan, M'gann, Miss M, Miss Martian," he stuck out a hand at a random spot beside his head. "Yay high, freckles, little green around the cheeks…" Dick realized Wally was teasing, by the sound of his voice and the way one corner of his mouth quirked up into a smirk.

He'd noticed her tone, after all then, but he was grossly misinterpreting it, trying in vain to lighten the mood.

He picked up another cookie, too quick to have given it a real decent look, and, stupidly, in a way that had him looking at the burnt bottom instead of the barely readable words of icing sugar on top that _may_ have helped him out here.

"Resident chef," he continued, frowning. "Though her baking totally needs some work with these…" he looked like he might try another one anyway though.

Dick, meanwhile, was trying to shoot Artemis meaningful glances to signal she should calm down a little – this was _Wally_, after all, and that alone was enough reason to hand him the benefit of the doubt. In spades, this time, because Wally _really_ had no idea. Dick could tell. No idea about _anything_.

He felt pretty bad for Artemis, but with his ever-present shades it was hard to get her attention short of waving his hands around – and Wally would certainly notice _that_, at least.

"So you _hate_ the cookies?" Artemis growled through grit teeth, glaring daggers at the one Wally held between his fingers. Dick got the impression she was trying really hard not to glare at Wally – she probably didn't want him to see she was mad, but she couldn't help being mad either.

Dick's shoulders slumped.

"Don't tell M'gann that," Wally replied, with a shrug and a half-hearted smile, looking up from the cookie he'd been eyeing critically. They were supposed to be heart-shaped, but every batch had come out horridly disfigured.

Wally recoiled, seeing Artemis's thunderous expression.

"Argh – one tries to do something _nice_ for you!" she exclaimed, exasperated, though there was a distinct note of defeat in her tone as well. She flung her arms in the air as she spoke, and then, for good measure Dick figured, casually flipped over the tray on the counter, sending cookies flying.

She stomped out the room with an indignant cry, strangling the air.

Wally's jaw had dropped at some point, and he sat staring after his girlfriend, attracting flies for nearly a minute before he sputtered, "W-what did I do?"

Dick, who had watched Artemis stomp off as well, had stayed seated with his eyes on the doorway just like Wally's, waiting patiently for his friend's brain to catch up.

He whipped around to face the redhead then, scowling, "Dude, what's the matter with you? You pissed her off, that's what you did."

Wally recoiled again, mouth working without words coming out for the briefest of moments before he finally managed, "Me? What's the matter with _you_?" Wally shot back pointlessly.

"Tch," Dick clicked his tongue, waved a hand, and opened his mouth to say something, but was unexpectedly cut off.

"You said 'pissed'," Jason stated, materialising behind the counter where Artemis had been standing, startling Wally so bad the speedster nearly fell backwards off his stool.

"Don't repeat that," Dick warned, pointing a finger at the younger boy, at the same time Wally muttered, "Freaking Robins."

Jason shrugged carelessly, eyeing a cookie he'd probably gotten off the floor. "I'm just saying. Agent A wouldn't like that…"

Dick rolled his eyes, "Like you're going to tell him. Pfft," but when he'd looked back at his – as he'd so affectionately come to think of him – little brother, the new Robin was gone.

He shared a glance with Wally, who shrugged. "At least he's got that down."

"What I was trying to say," Dick started. "Artemis—"

"I don't even _know_!" Wally interrupted, raising his arms and gesturing helplessly at the exit. "I came here to _see her_. Zeta tube's down, I had to _run_. _All. The way. Here_. And not even in my uniform, either. My feet _hurt_, if you'll believe that. My hair's a mess," he ran his free hand through his tousled do for emphasis, "I am sweating, _like a pig_, and I am _hungry_! Now my girlfriend's _pissed_, as you so eloquently put it, and I wasn't even talking about her! And it's not like Megs would have been _totally offended_ by what I said either – constructive criticism, she likes that—"

Dick just rolled his eyes, unable to help it.

"_Why_ are they _so_ bad, anyway?" Wally exclaimed, eyeing the one he still had in his hand. He wasn't expecting an answer though, continuing his lament without waiting on one, "I come to the cave after a long, _awful_ day, to see my girlfriend, but now she's mad at me for who knows—" _I know…_ Dick thought, slapping a hand to his forehead and dragging it across his face until his chin rested in his palm again. "—what reason, and I'm hungry, and all there is to eat apparently, are these _terrible_," Wally turned the cookie this way and that, finally noticing the sugary words. He squinted at them, "'Happy Valentine's Day'…cookies…" he trailed off, realisation dawning on his features. "_Oh_."

The speedster suddenly sat a little straighter, his eyes widened and his jaw dropped again.

He shifted his green eyes in Dick's direction and the previous Boy Wonder flashed him a sympathetic little smile.

"Dude," he said slowly, quietly. "Tell me I didn't."

Dick cringed, shrugged at his best friend and lowered his sunglasses a little so Wally could see his eyes, "Sorry, dude. You totally did."

Wally's face fell, and then, with a desperate little moan, the fastest kid alive bolted off his seat, sending his cookie flying.

Reflexively, Dick reached out to catch it, turning around in his seat just in time to see his best friend speeding down the corridor beyond the doorway and around a corner.

"**_Artemiiiiiiiiiiissssss!_**"

Barely a few seconds later he swiftly appeared again, running in the opposite direction only to trip over his untied laces, though that barely deterred him from jumping up and running off again.

Dick smiled, chuckling and shaking his head.

Absently, he bit into the cookie he still, only to splutter and spit it out again inelegantly – heavy on the 'in', but it was better than the alternative. The foul taste would stick to his tongue and the inside of his cheek for another hour at least, despite a fervent attempt to mask it with better tastes.

Dick stared at the cookie, appalled, "_What_ are you?!"

A high-pitched, blatantly amused cackled echoed around the room.

Dick scowled.

* * *

**A/N: I didn't actually ****_mean_**** to write Jason, but then...then I wanted to, so *shrug* XP Sorry if he sounds at all out of character! *face palm* Thanks for the read :)**


	5. Blue Punch Buggy

**SOUTH AFRICA**

**February 15, 01:08 SAST**

**Is it still Valentine's Day somewhere in the world...? XP Not sure how much I like this one, but it had been one of the first ideas I had when I decided I was writing this story, so...there you go.**

* * *

**PALO ALTO**

**February 14, 13:58 PST**

**_Team Year Five_**

Artemis Crock stood just outside her and Wally's apartment, one hand on the staircase's railing, the other on her hip, her lips gathered into a frown as she waited – somewhat impatiently.

_Honestly, how long does it take _the fastest kid alive_ to fetch a car!_

She rolled her eyes, sighing. She would have gone back inside to wait, but she was half convinced that he'd show up the instant she made herself comfortable on the couch. Besides, he'd said he was only five minutes away. She glanced at her watch. That was ten minutes ago.

And then, _at last_, a blue beetle pulled up next to the sidewalk, and Wally West climbed out of the driver's seat, grinning at her over the top of the car.

Artemis raised an eyebrow. _That_ was the car he'd been so excited about? He'd gone on all week refusing to tell her anything about it, insisting it was a surprise, and, frankly, Artemis had expected something a little more…_flashy_.

She smiled – a little bemused, she wouldn't admit – at him anyway and picked up one of their suitcases. Wally skipped up the stairs to greet her with a kiss, still grinning even as he did so.

"_Well_?" Wally said excitedly, taking the proffered suitcase and gesturing back at the car with his free hand. "What do you think?"

She leaned a little sideways to peer around him at the vehicle. "It's…like a modern punch buggy."

Wally's face fell a little at her unenthusiastic response. "Well, yeah…but, it's a reliable car. Even if it does, you know, invoke a friendly punch-fest. Which reminds me!" his grin returned, and his free hand coming around, fingers curled into a fist.

But Artemis beat him to it, stopping him short as she hit his arm. His grin fell, and he gaped at her, dismayed.

"Blue punch buggy," she deadpanned, her face as serious as she could make it.

Wally scowled good-naturedly, a challenge hidden in his green eyes, and Artemis knew she'd started something now. They'd be picking out punch buggies for the next day and a half no doubt.

"No punch-back," she added, crossing her middle and forefinger in front of his face.

He glared at her, "You spoil my fun."

She grinned triumphantly at him, "My prerogative, Babe."

"Heh," he smiled. "Yeah, says you."

He snatched up their other suitcases before Artemis could, and hobbled down the narrow staircase with the bags held in front of him, the third tucked under one outstretched arm, in an accurate interpretation of Frankenstein's monster.

"So, do you really not like it?" Wally asked, seriously this time, as Artemis joined him next to the sleek blue vehicle wherein he was stuffing their cases. She handed him her vanity case to load as well.

She shrugged, "It's…kind of adorable, really."

"It's not a _girl_," Wally scoffed at her adjective, but then paused. "Well, okay, it _is_ a girl. But, it's blue, so, it's like a tomboy."

Artemis snorted, "Sure, Baywatch," she teased, lightly punching him in the gut. He faked a grunt and a wounded expression, but Artemis only laughed, making her way up to the passenger door.

She cleared her throat, "Well, are we still leaving _today_?"

He smiled, and came up beside her all proper-like to open the door. He even bowed a little, "_M'lady_."

Artemis laughed, and got inside, comfortably sinking back against the seat. It _was_ pretty comfortable.

Wally joined her a second later, and started up his ride, warning her to buckle-up even as she did so.

The radio came on as Wally pulled into the road and Artemis realized he was listening to some old CD she wasn't fond of.

Wally started talking though, relating his trip to the old croon's who'd sold him the car, and Artemis ignored the music in favour of listening to his story and stealing heart-shaped candy from the cubbyhole.

She offered him one, and Wally popped it in his mouth without a second thought.

Sometime later they were on the outskirts of town, and Wally was reminding her to let her mom know they'd left home. She pulled out her phone to relay the message and caught sight of the date just before returning the device to her pocket.

Artemis glanced sideways at Wally, who'd started talking about something else again.

She's stopped saying "happy Valentine's Day" first, because all it did was leave Wally wallowing with guilt and regret at having forgotten, which he'd developed a habit for doing, and, after the incident with the cookies she'd messed up so badly, Artemis didn't feel like experiencing a repeat of Wally's sullen mood.

He'd tried making it up to her in various ways over the years, but his attempts were usually interrupted by missions or went south in some other way, if he didn't just forget he'd set some plan in motion altogether, leaving them both surprised.

It's not that he ignored Valentine's Day on purpose, Artemis reflected, it was just that it kind of passed him by without Wally thinking about it. Kid Flash and their never-ending missions took up most of their time, in addition to college and whatnot, and Artemis doubted Wally and Dick spent days beforehand devising romantic plans to impress their girlfriends with.

Dick was probably more concerned with how to avoid his girlfriends, anyway.

Moreover, there was very little nowadays to remind Wally that it was Valentine's. He barely watched television unless it was the news. And apparently he didn't bother with the radio either. If he hadn't been listening to his own silly tunes, he'd have said happy Valentine's before he asked her what she thought of the car.

Artemis sighed, sinking deeper into the seat, closing her eyes. It didn't really matter, she decided. If they skipped Valentine's Day for the rest of their lives, they'd hardly _really_ be missing out on anything. They both already knew how much they cared for each other. They'd always known.

"Babe?" Wally asked, glancing at her, but Artemis waved his concern away without opening her eyes.

"I'm just taking a nap."

"Oh. Okay. Sweet dreams," he said, a smile in his tone.

She smiled too.

Artemis was happy to actually fall genuinely asleep for most of the ride, since it meant she didn't have to listen to Wally's music, which was repeating itself by the time she woke up for the third time during their ride. Only, this time, she wasn't going back to sleep, and Wally's music was giving her a headache.

"Wally," she said at last, a little exasperated, as she sat upright and opened the cubbyhole. "Don't you have _anything _else to listen to?"

"No," he said, a little too quickly.

She eyed him askance, frowning, but returned to rummaging through the compartment without commenting.

"Ah-ha!" she exclaimed at last, discovering one of her CD's in a case along with one of Wally's. "Finally some _decent_ music," she mumbled, exchanging his CD for hers.

"'Decent'?" Wally chided playfully. "_Babe_," he moaned with mock frustration, as her CD started up. "I love you, but your taste in music kind of sucks," he reached for the radio with a tentative finger, "Let's find out what's in the news, rather, hey?"

He grinned at her, pressing the button for the radio, switching from her loud music to the soft melodic sounds of _Your Song_.

Wally's grin slipped from his face the moment his eyes met hers, though, even as he pressed the button. His gaze only lingered for a moment before he had to go back to watching the road again, however. "Artemis?" he said uncertainly. "What'd I say?"

He glanced at her, and Artemis promptly shut her mouth and turned away.

She'd been staring at him, her heart suddenly beating three times faster in her chest, and her breath caught in her throat.

"_Artemis_?" he repeated, a little more forcefully, and Artemis shook her head – in reply so much as to snap herself out of it.

"Nothing," she said quickly. "It's nothing, I just…haven't heard that song in a while…"

She saw him frowning at her, pensively, from the corner of her eye and knew he hadn't bought it.

She looked pointedly out the window, where the sun was setting in the distance, casting the horizon in a solemn orange glow.

It was ridiculous, she told herself. All kinds of parts of it, for all kinds of reasons.

For all that they'd been together for more than three years, finally sharing an apartment, getting a dog…neither one of them had ever _actually told_ the other…well, the L-word is what she called it in her head.

On the one hand, it had never felt particularly _necessary_. The perfect moment to say it never seemed to crop up anyway. There were plenty of moments for kissing, and cuddling, and embracing and making out, and flirting, but…even in the midst of all that, 'I love you' had never come up.

Not even after particularly dangerous missions, leaving them battered, bruised and half-broken in each other's arms. And then they'd cry a little, and kiss, and kiss some more after they'd healed.

Sometimes, Artemis thought they were saying it with kisses rather than words. The L-kisses.

The I.L.Y-kisses.

Wally was the longest, most stable, secure relationship she'd ever had, in all of her life – thus far. Part of her sometimes thought she desperately _wanted_ to tell him she loved him, because she was honestly, sincerely convinced most days that she did. The words just wouldn't make their way past the massive lump in her throat, though, and she'd end up kissing him instead.

He'd grin, goofily, and kiss her back. Sometimes, Artemis thought, in a way that was meant to tell her he knew exactly what she was struggling with, that he understood, and he was trying to tell her the same thing, he just didn't know how to either.

Artemis wasn't sure he'd ever been that serious with a girl before.

Sometimes, she just didn't _want_ to tell him, in case she jinxed it and he left her.

Hadn't she told her mother she loved her? Hadn't she said it to Jade? Hadn't she even thought it about her no-good father, said as much at some point, only to have all three of them drop out of her life within heartbeats of each other? Or, so it felt anyway.

Her mom came back, at least. Jade was too much of a wild card to be trusted to stay put, and of course she hadn't. And her father…_well_. No comment on that. He was _never_ coming back.

But Wally…she didn't want Wally to leave.

She hadn't wanted Wally to say it any more than she'd wanted to say it either. If he did, he'd expect her to say it back – they'd been together for _years_, after all, how could she _not_ love him – but what if she couldn't? What if the words wouldn't come? What if she couldn't explain? He'd figure she didn't love him after all, and why would he stay with her then?

He wouldn't. He'd leave her. Never knowing how she felt, because she hadn't been able to tell him.

…Or – or what if he said it, but didn't really mean it? What if he'd just blurted it out, just then, just now, the way he declared his undying love and devotion to Chicken Whizzies – as meaningless as it was careless?

Would that be worse, Artemis wondered.

It certainly felt worse. If she hadn't reacted with such surprise, Wally could have shrugged it off and Artemis could have pretended she'd never heard, but now he knew something was wrong, and they'd have to talk about it.

If he didn't really love her…she'd be broken, and they'd fall apart eventually. And if he did, and she didn't say it back, they'd fall apart that much sooner.

"_Shit_," Wally said fervently, unexpectedly, startling Artemis into nicking her bottom lip, having been chewing on it absently. She licked at it, tasting blood, as she eyed Wally from the corner of her eye. He'd flicked on the turn light and was pulling onto the side of the road.

It was eerily quiet when he shut off the car.

Artemis caught her lip between her teeth again. _This is stupid, Artemis. You're a grown woman. Quit thinking like an idiot._ Probably this had nothing to do with any of that. Wally just suddenly had a revelation he needed to stop for – like maybe he realised something was wrong with his second-hand bug after all, and they had to drive back six hours to return it and buy plane tickets to Gotham instead.

Besides, she chided herself, Wally wouldn't leave her. What had she been thinking? He'd said so a million times. What was 'I love you' nowadays anyway?

"Artemis," Wally started, a somewhat panicked note to his voice, and when he continued he was almost speed-talking, turning in his seat to face her properly, "I'm _so_ sorry – I did _not_ mean that."

Her head whipped up to face him before she had sense enough to stop, just nod and let it slide rather, tell him it didn't matter. But then she was looking at him, not sure at all of what she was supposed to say to _that_. He'd even _apologized_ for saying it!

Artemis wasn't sure of half the feelings churning inside of her, except that one was definite disappointment and another felt like severe _grief_ and _heartache_—

He must have seen some of it in her eyes, because he recoiled, blinking, and then both of his hands shot up, waving this way and that in protest, "No, no, I mean – I _meant_ it, of course, really, I just didn't mean to say it like _that_."

Her grief and heartache was inexplicably replaced with dread at the sound of that, a bundle of nerves growing restlessly in her stomach, and still she had no idea what to say.

Wally was still talking, thankfully, "I really _did_ mean it, I just didn't mean to say it that way – so…so _casually_. I just blurted it out, and that's not how you do it. I was going to say it – I-I've always been going to, the timing just always seemed off," he shrugged, his hands moving animatedly as he spoke, but his eyes slipping on and off of hers nervously, colour rising in his cheeks. "And-and if I was ever going to do it, which I was, I meant to have you at a nice restaurant, with champagne or something, and candlelight, all romantic. Or – or I'd say it on Valentine's Day, _at least_—"

Artemis barked a laugh at that, unable to help herself, and Wally blinked, surprised. Artemis quickly shut her mouth, swallowing the smile that threatened to form at her oblivious boyfriend's expense.

Wally smiled at her, though, all the tension seemingly having drained out of him, his shoulders slumped now, his posture relaxed.

She swallowed, and looked away from his gaze, feeling a blush cover her cheeks.

Around them, the inside of Wally's blue punch buggy was turning increasingly darker as the day's light continued to fade, the car's speedometer lights shining as bright a green as Wally's eyes.

"Artemis," he said quietly, in that rare serious tone he sometimes got. He reached up, cupping her cheek in the palm of his hand. "I…" she kept her eyes pointedly averted, feeling increasingly stupid at doing so, but she couldn't manage looking up at him either. "I…" she heard him stop a second time, to swallow audibly and suck in a quick gasp of air, "I love you," he whispered, somewhat breathlessly.

Plucking up courage from somewhere unknown, Artemis spied him through her lashes, chewing at her bottom lip again, still not sure of what to say.

He spared her an attempt at speaking though, leaning in a little closer, a little lower, to look properly into her eyes. "You don't have to say it back. Don't get me wrong, I'd like you to," he added quickly, the corners of his mouth quirking up for a moment, "But you don't have to if you're not ready. I get it. It's a lot harder than I made it sound the first time," he shrugged. "Just, you know…just kiss me again. That's the best reply to almost anything," he grinned, and a laugh escaped through her lips unbidden.

She shook her head, breathed, "Wally…"

He had his seatbelt unbuckled in half a second and was kissing her in another.

"I love you, too," she choked when he broke the kiss, surprising herself, but saying it so quietly she was torn between hoping and fearing that he'd heard.

His forehead resting comfortably against hers, his hand in her neck with his thumb gently rubbing her cheek, Wally grinned. "I know, Babe," he whispered. "I've always known."

* * *

**A/N: I'll update the last chapter whne the sun shines again...I needs moar sleep. . Thanks for reading! :)**


	6. This Valentine's Day Thing

**SOUTH AFRICA**

**February 15, 23:03 SAST**

**My apologies for the tardiness of this chapter...I hope you've enjoyed reading these. I'm kind of uncertain, on account of... lack of... response... *shrug* Feel free to tell me what you've thought... Also, there's a link to the cover picture in my profile, if you wanted to see it big and potentially pretty. :) Enjoy the last chapter...? ^^;**

* * *

**MOUNT JUSTICE**

**February 14, 18:48 EST**

**_Team Year One_**

Bouncing excitedly from one foot to another, practically vibrating, Wally West pulled item after item from the bag on the floor, placing them in a neat row on the kitchen counter.

Unbeknownst to him, his teammates – Robin, Megan, Conner, Kaldur and Zatanna – were just outside one of the doors, periodically peering into the room to see what he was doing.

M'gann was grinning expectantly, happy and excited to be partaking in this interesting Earth tradition. They didn't have Valentine's Days on Mars and whilst television referenced and displayed the holiday well-enough, M'gann knew – and had the point reiterated by Robin – that things didn't really work out the way television suggested.

That was true enough.

In school that morning she'd seen plenty of different Valentine's celebrations and traditions television didn't do justice.

One student had serenaded another in the middle of class (badly, to his misfortune, and he ended up sent to the principal's office for disrupting the lesson – on the bright side, the girl seemed somehow impressed), anonymous letters had been passed around and Megan had even gotten a few herself, and there was to be a dance over the weekend to celebrate as well.

M'gann had even gotten her and Conner tickets. He was still munching contently on the red velvet cupcake she'd bought him, and she was wearing his red rose in her hair.

Kaldur seemed stoic as he always did, arms comfortably at his sides, standing straight and rigid as a board, partaking in their spying because he either wanted to make sure they didn't pull some prank and ruin Wally's surprise while they were at it, or because he had nothing better to do, _or_, M'gann believed, because he was actually, in fact, enjoying himself.

Robin and Zatanna stood right next to the doorway, and were doing most of the peering in a discreet, inconspicuous manner, sticking as close to each other as they were to the wall. Though M'gann wasn't entirely certain what was going on there, Zatanna _had_ disclosed to her, in confidence of course, that Robin had asked her to be his Valentine, if nothing else.

"Here we go," Robin whispered, pulling his head back and slumping against the wall as he started typing away at his wrist computer's holographic keyboard.

M'gann and the others gathered curiously around the Boy Wonder, as he pulled up a projection of the mission room's security camera.

**_Recognized: Artemis B07._**

They watched the bright yellow light from the zeta tube fade until only Artemis, dressed in her green uniform, remained.

Wally was right in front of her not even a second later, probably grinning, "Hey, Beautiful," he said, trying to sound casual, but unable to keep the excitement from his tone.

"Hi, Wally…" Artemis replied, sounding somewhat cautious, having caught on to Wally's tone.

M'gann swallowed a giggle – caution was the right response to have. The last time Wally looked that excited, he and Robin nearly blew up the entire kitchen.

"I have something for you," Wally said. "But it's a surprise," and he held up the blindfold he'd been clutching in one hand, spreading it out in front of her, "So you have to…" he trailed off suggestively.

Artemis groaned, "Wally…you know I don't like surprises."

"You'll like _this one_," he wheedled. "I promise. Come on, _please_? Trust me."

Artemis let out a strangled sigh, throwing back her head in exasperation, but she shrugged anyway, giving in. "Fine."

Wally held up the blindfold as Artemis closed her eyes patiently, but the speedster shifted it this way and that, coming up against Artemis's ponytail at the back of her head and realizing he didn't have room enough to tie it off.

"Er…"

"What now?" Artemis's eyes opened and she raised an eyebrow at the redhead.

"You have a lot of hair," Wally said bluntly. "How do you even manage with _that_ much hair? You ever thought of cutting it?"

Artemis rolled her eyes, "Wally—"

"Sorry-sorry," he said quickly, holding up a hand defensively. "I kid, I kid – your hair is great. The longer the better – a few more years you could be a real-life Rapunzel. It's even blonde, too—"

"Give me that," Artemis snapped, snatching the blindfold from him and tying it herself, managing easily.

Wally stood silent for a second before he mumbled, "How did you do that?"

"So, where is this surprise?" Artemis asked, her minor impatience with the speedster apparently evaporated.

Wally wasted no time scooping Artemis into his arms. "Hold on," he grinned.

He ran off at superspeed, and Robin shut off the computer in favour of watching the real thing.

M'gann, using her telekinesis, lifted her and Superboy into the air where they could hover above Kaldur's head to peer around the doorframe.

Robin was practically on his stomach, Zatanna leaning over him, and Kaldur standing, peering over her head as they each claimed a spot to see from.

Wally burst into the room, depositing Artemis unceremoniously into a stool by the counter. "Okay. Now, sit still," he instructed, standing behind her with his hands on her shoulders. "Okay," he took a breath, taking a measured step back, but not letting go of her. "Aaaannnd—"

With a yelp from his girlfriend, Wally had shoved hard at her shoulders, sending her stool into a quick spin. Mindful of her blonde ponytail, Wally pushed on the stool, on her arm, nearly at superspeed to make her go faster once or twice, laughing even as she yelled at him, "_Wallyyyy—!_"

Watching from the doorway, the Team gave a collective little sigh, and M'gann resisted the urge to slap her hand to her forehead.

Not ten seconds later though, Wally forced Artemis to a stop, putting his hands on her shoulders.

"Wally—" she started again, sounding decidedly furious.

Wally chuckled half-heartedly, "_Sorry_," he said, abashed, "I couldn't help it."

"If _this_ is your surprise – it sucks."

"No, no-no-no-no," Wally said quickly, and spun her around so she faced the counter once more, oblivious to her little squawk at the unexpected action. "_This_," he cleared his throat formally, and then frowned at the back of her head. "This is my surprise…" he said somewhat uncertainly, looking for the knot in the blindfold, but not seeing it. He sped around the counter so he was on the other side, facing her instead, and pinched the fabric between his fingers.

"Artemis," he said seriously, slipping the blindfold up and off her eyes. "Happy Valentine's Day…"

Artemis's lips parted in surprise, and she stared, first at Wally for the briefest moment, before she looked down at the counter.

Arranged before her sat an array of cookies, pink heart shapes decorating every other one, their paper plates cut out into rough heart shapes as well. A pretty wine glass was filled with cranberry juice, a scented candle burned a strawberry fragrance into the air, and a small white teddy bear sat in the centre of it all, a red ribbon attached to one ear.

"Wally…" Artemis breathed. "I…"

"I figured your old one could do with a girlfriend," Wally teased, picking up the white bear and holding it out to her.

Artemis glanced at him.

Wally's face fell, "You don't like it?"

She shook her head, "No – _no_. It's not that, I just… I… forgot," she said. "I didn't get _you_ anything."

Wally blinked, surprised, but then his face split into a grin. "Hey, don't worry about it, Babe," he shrugged, speeding around to come up next to her. "I don't mind."

"But… Wally," Artemis said, getting up from the stool. "It's our _first_ Valentine's Day together. Isn't it supposed to be…'special', you know?"

Wally appeared to ponder that a moment, before he set down the bear and grabbed the plate of cookies instead, "We could eat these _special_ cookies," he joked. "Or, you could give me your half," he grinned. "That'd be pretty special."

Artemis chuckled, "Sure. You can have them."

"I was kidding," Wally smiled, trading the plate for Artemis's waist instead.

She settled her arms comfortably around his neck in return. "I am making this up to you. Next year, I'll…I'll bake _you_ some cookies."

"Looking forward to it, Beautiful," Wally grinned, leaning in for a kiss.

Smiling, M'gann looked down at Conner, who was smiling back up at her, too. She pecked him on the cheek.

This Valentine's Day thing was turning out to be a lot of fun.

* * *

**END.**


	7. Spitfire

**SOUTH AFRICA**

**March 14, 20:29 SAST  
**

**I read somewhere 14 March is like "reply/replay" Valentine's Day, where you reply to whatever message you got on Valentine's. So, bonus chapter on a relevant day! XP**

* * *

**PALO ALTO**

**February 14, 23:48 PST**

**_Team Year Seven_**

Artemis was down on her knees, scrubbing vigorously at the red striped carpet underfoot. Dirty soapsuds clung to the yellow gloves she wore, to the sponge, to the rug.

She sniffed, rubbed at her nose with the back of her hand, leaving bubbles behind without noticing.

She scrubbed some more, then left behind the now shiny circle of rug to move onto the next patch.

A knock, potentially at the door, stopped her short just as she threatened the rug with a spongeful of water. But it was a quiet sound and, in the stunning silence that followed, Artemis thought she might have imagined it.

Finally, she decided she had, and took to squeezing the sponge out over the rug. Soapy liquid dropped onto the fabric and Artemis sighed. This was going to take a small eternity. But she'd started and insisted on doing the whole thing, so...she had to see it through. Or, at least try to. There were too many things she'd been leaving unfinished lately.

Another, very _distinct_ this time, knock sounded at the door and Artemis frowned up at it. It was nearly midnight, she knew – who in the world could be bothering her at this hour?

With a heavy sigh that was trying and failing not to sound annoyed, Artemis pushed herself up to her feet, leaving wet handprints on the knees of her jeans without caring. She plucked one yellow glove from her hand as she approached the door, and opened it just as another knock sounded. It ended a little feebly as she pulled the door away from one darkly gloved hand left hanging now pointlessly in the air.

Her visitor was tall, his hair as dark and lengthy as ever, a familiar-looking set of sunglasses perched on his nose despite the clear lack of sunlight.

For the shortest of moments Artemis couldn't do much more than stare at the apparition in front of her – because it was so ridiculously _absurd_ that, of all the places to pop up, it'd be _her_ front door. Wasn't there like a manor of people – well, alright, four, or, _two_ if you wanted to be technical – just watching the front door for any sign of his silhouette beyond the glass windows?

Artemis clicked her tongue at the grin tugging on the corner of his mouth.

"Who am I talking to?" she said, narrowing her eyes and raising one eyebrow at him. "You-know-who, or…secret ID You-know-who?"

He chuckled, the sound a vague, faded version of an old familiar cackled he'd been infamous for. "I think the second one," he said, forever smiling, as he reached for his sunglasses and pulled them off his nose. His eyes were still _so_ blue. "You-know-who doesn't walk around in civvies anymore. It's just Dick now, sunglasses included." He waved them back and forth before pocketing the eyewear.

"Hmp," he snorted, but smiled as well. It was good to hear his voice. "Well, stay out there freezing, if you'd like," she said, and stepped aside for him to enter.

"I'd like," he replied cheekily, crossing the threshold, looking around her apartment as he did, quick blue eyes taking in everything just as they'd been trained to. Artemis took distinct notice of something as well – the way he never turned his back to her, keeping one hand out of sight.

He was turned to face her as Artemis shut the door and Dick gave her another quick once-over. Her hair was shorter than he remembered, kind of choppy-looking in their layers now, and she had a fresh tan, like she'd recently been in the sun a long time… _Probably a mission_, he figured, but it wouldn't have been today. The puffiness was leaving her eyes, the red rims of her dark grey orbs only detected by his blue ones because they'd been looking for it. Her jeans were dirty, and that was Wally's sweatshirt, its sleeves rolled up and over several times so they'd stay up above her elbows. Her upper arms were wet, above where she was wearing the yellow gloves, one of them removed now to answer the door with a dry hand.

"I like your nose," he commented, tapping the side of his own.

She frowned, wiped at her nose, removing the bubbles that had been left behind. "Hmp."

"Spring cleaning?" he inquired with a bemused smile, raising an eyebrow at her.

Artemis scoffed, pulling off the other glove as well and dropping it into a bucket at the edge of the rug. "I spilled some wine," she shrugged.

Dick made a face, sort of pursing his lips, sort of frowning, but he nodded like he got it, and looked down and around in search of the cleaned patch. "Across half the carpet?" he asked, seeing the spots of soapsuds from one edge towards the bucket where Artemis had been working.

Briefly she narrowed her eyes at him, unable to tell if he was being obnoxious or genuinely confused. She rolled her eyes. "It was bothering me. So I cleaned it."

He looked back up at her with an expression that clearly said, _Across half the carpet?_

"It was too clean. It bothered me, so I decided I'd wash the whole thing," she shrugged again, annoyed.

"Okay," he said easily, with a shrug of his own and a quirk of his mouth.

She nodded shortly, crossed her arms and relaxed her weight onto one leg. Dick looked around a second time, not offering up anything for conversation. That was decidedly odd, Artemis figured – generally he was chattier than this.

_What are you doing _here_, anyway?_

She'd get there, she decided, or if she didn't, he would.

"With gloves, though – _really_?" he asked abruptly, his tone plainly amused.

Artemis glared good-naturedly at him, "_Yes_," she replied flippantly, sparing one hand a quick glance before curling up her fingers to hide her nails.

"Oh," Dick replied, a knowing air to his voice.

With a sigh she waved him off with a hand though the air, "I'll make coffee. You can tell me how you've been," carefully not saying '_where_ you've been'. She stuck her hands into the sweatshirt's pockets.

"Sure," Dick grinned, and stepped a little aside for her to pass – not that there wasn't any room, but he was being careful not to let her see what he had behind his back. She'd noticed, too, by the roll of her eyes, which, Dick thought, she probably hadn't thought he'd seen, but really she should have known better. Humouring him, he thought, she made her way to the kitchen ahead of him.

"I like your nails," he commented, having seen them neatly trimmed and painted green. "It fits your skin."

"Oh," Artemis said shortly, watching her nails as she flicked the switch on the kettle with one finger from 'off' to 'on'. Belatedly she added a mumbled, "Thanks," and then, because it was Dick and he was _Dick_, she felt the need to explain herself – explain that rude undertone that had crept into her voice. "Wally…" she started, haltingly, her voice almost catching in her throat as she said his name. Thinking it came a lot easier, and she'd thought on it often. But how many weeks had it been since she'd _said_ it? "Picked it out," she trudged on, in a quiet voice. "Thought it…would look nice," she shrugged.

"Yeah?" Dick said, just as quietly. "He…wasn't wrong…"

Artemis didn't add that she'd found the teal green colour a little gaudy after the first wear. She didn't go into detail about the pathetic tearfest she'd indulged in upon finding the little bottle discarded in a drawer somewhere earlier today. She didn't admit that she'd been wearing the yellow gloves so as not to chip her nails, because, watching her fingers on the kettle switch, she was becoming increasingly _fond_ of the colour. It was nice, and yes, it _did_…match her skin. Just as Wally had said, too.

_I know, Arty…_ Dick thought, watching the archer's back. She still stood as straight as ever, her shoulders back; she was regal-looking in her stance, even though she was just standing in her kitchen, waiting for the water to boil, intent on making coffee. _I was there when he picked it…_ at a flea market in Gotham on one of the rare days he and Dick got to spend time together. _…I missed him, too, but… Hm. How to go about this?_

The slobbering sound of a licking tongue, footsteps padding heavily across the wooden floor, pulled Dick from his reverie, and he turned just enough to see Artemis – and Wally's – white dog trotting up to him, tail wagging.

"Hey, Brucey!" he grinned, genuinely happy to see the dog. He dropped down to his haunches, his free hand patting the dog's head before his fingers took to scratching him behind the ears. _Bingo._

Artemis had turned around and crossed her arms as she leaned back against the counter, watching Dick with Bruce. That dog could sleep through _anything_. And generally did, too. Most days he didn't bother doing more than cracking an eye to watch Artemis pass before he went right back to snoozing. When Wally was still…_well_. Well, Bruce hardly bothered getting up for him, either.

"How've you been, boy? Been good, have you? Took good care of Arty?" Dick chuckled.

But Dick. The dog would wake up scant minutes after his voice sounded through the apartment and come rushing out of his hidey-hole to meet the ex-Boy Wonder with enthusiastic licks and doggy-hugs.

_"Traitor," _Wally would scoff, grinning, and Bruce would bark as if to say he knew Wally was only kidding and he still loved him, before he went back to enjoying Dick's tickling fingers.

Bruce had been exactly the right name for him.

"I bet you have," Dick said, looking over at Artemis. _She's still alive, after all_, on the tip of his tongue, but his grin faltered a bit as he decided against saying those words aloud. Despite the news, it wasn't a proper joke to be making at the moment. He got to his feet instead, pretended the sudden lack of vigour on his face was on account of his following question, "So… how _is_ Bruce? _My_ Bruce, I mean."

"You haven't even spoken to him yet? Or – or been home?" Artemis said, unable to keep a bite of incredulity from her tone.

Dick shrugged nonchalantly, "We've _spoken_. I just haven't been to see him or anything. I had something else to do first…"

Artemis raised one delicate eyebrow at that. Behind her, the kettle stopped boiling with a soft _click_. She ignored it. "You're gone for more than half a year – just…_off the grid_, not a word. Then you waltz back…into our lives," her crossed arms came undone and she shrugged with her hands in the air, stepping away from the counter. "And your very _first_ stop, isn't your…_dad_," she insisted, "It's _me_," a pause, as she left that to sink in for a second. "…Something you'd like to tell me, Dick?"

He fought not to smile, the grip behind his back tightening a little.

"Not…_tell_," he replied carefully. "So much as, something to _give_ you."

Artemis's eyes narrowed. She'd known he knew she'd caught on to his little game. He'd been moving strategically for all of the ten or however minutes he'd been in her apartment, careful not to turn his back to her, indiscreetly hiding something behind it. _Purposely_ hiding something behind it. So she _knew_, of course, that he _wanted_ her to comment on it. Wanted her to ask what it was.

Naturally, thus, Artemis had made a point of ignoring it. She hated being baited – something Dick was not entirely unaware of, either.

But Dick had been trained by the Batman. Manipulation was an art form and he was drowning in talent in that area. Since openly hiding the thing behind his back hadn't been enough to entice her, or aggravating her, into asking what it was, however, he'd manipulated the conversation so the only logical, following comment she could make, _had_ to be a question – what do you have to give me? What is it? What-what-what – leading him straight to the grand reveal of whatever he was hiding. Just as he'd wanted.

Artemis scowled. She'd missed Dick.

It wasn't that she had no more connection to the rest of the Team – M'gann was still her best friend, practically her only one, but Dick… Dick and Wally. Dick and Artemis. Dick and Artemis and Wally. The three of them had something…_else_. Some _other_, some more…"_special_" connection. After Wally…after he was gone, Artemis had almost thought she and Dick would rely a little more on each other. The old clichéd "being there" for each other bit. But he'd left. He'd left, and finding comfort with Wally's parents had turned awkward very quickly, and Artemis was alone again. Alone with her thoughts and her memories that no one would understand, because no one knew Wally the way she had, except for Dick, maybe, but…he was gone.

Seeing him standing in her doorway—

"If I hit you," Artemis said abruptly, deciding to ignore the bait after all. "Just _once_, but, really _hard_, right on the nose…would you forgive me?"

Dick blinked at her, and then laughed, doubling over once as he chuckled – cackled almost. What was with that sound? What was it doing at the edge of his laughter? Artemis hadn't heard that youthful echo in years. Even before Wally—

"Get in line, Arty," he said at last, shaking his head, still smiling. "I can think of at _least_ three other people – four, if Alfred has no restraint left – who have first dibs on that," another laugh, like he didn't mind at all.

Artemis frowned. What was so important he needed to see her first? Before his _family_?

"Come on, Arty," he sobered up, no longer _smiling_, exactly, but it was hardly a frown on his handsome face, either. His eyes looked so… _serious_. "I don't know how to bring it up. I don't know how you'll react. You have to ask me what it is."

"Now I _really_ don't want to," Artemis mumbled under her breath, though he'd probably heard anyway. She bet his _ears_ got training, too. She sighed, rolling her eyes again – not sure if it was at him or herself, though. "How is this more important than going _home_, Dick?" she had to ask.

"I was a little late," he answered at once, as if he'd had it waiting in the wings. "I had to get this to you _today_, so," a one-shouldered shrug. "I had to stop here first. I promised."

Well. He was nothing if not bound to his word.

"Fine," she conceded, crossing the space between them, watching Dick's face light up with a grin. "What do you have to give me, Dick?" amusement coloured her tone despite herself, making Dick's grin grow even wider.

He pulled it out with a flourish to hold it up between them, right under her nose.

Artemis suddenly found herself staring at a single flower, its five scarlet-red petals brilliantly bright, framed by lily-pad shaped leaves, tied close to the flower's stem with a thin string.

Her mouth dropped open with surprise, and she glanced up at Dick. "Who did you '_promise_' to bring me a flower for?" she asked incredulously, fingering a delicate petal with two fingers.

"Wally," Dick started, and Artemis's eyes snapped up again, watching him through her lashes suspiciously, a knot in her throat.

He swallowed, eyeing her just as carefully, but then traipsed on as intended, "…had always wanted to give you one. It's called Spitfire."

She slipped the flower from Dick's fingers into her own, blinking at the hotness in her eyes. She bit her bottom lip.

_"She's my little Spitfire, Dick," _she'd overheard Wally say about her once, not long after they'd started dating. He'd been whispering, sounding happily far-off. She'd paused outside the doorway, bemused at what he'd called Robin, until the Boy Wonder replied with a hiss, _"Dude – secret identity!"_

_"Duuude!"_ a clap as Wally covered his mouth at an inhuman speed. _"…Sorry…"_

_"Never mind, I don't think anyone heard…"_

A small smile crept across Artemis's face as she looked at the flower, shifting her weight from one foot to another. "Thanks," she mumbled, breathing in deeply, trying hard not to think about his face, only because she didn't want to burst into tears in front of Dick.

"Sure," Dick replied easily, stuffing both hands into his pockets, taking a quick, discreet breath himself in anticipation to what he was about to say. "He'd have given it to you himself, if he weren't—"

"That is _not_ funny!" she snapped at once, her voice sounding strained around the lump in her throat. She hit him against his chest, but he hardly flinched even though she'd put a fair amount of force behind the punch – wherever he'd been, he'd definitely been keeping up his training.

A throaty laugh escaped him unbidden, Dick's lips curling into the smile he'd been trying hard to hide.

She scowled at him, making to turn around and stomp off to hide the tears that were threatening to form so much as because she wasn't in the mood to look at him anymore. What was he thinking making jokes about Wally being—

Being _dead_. Hadn't he been his _best friend_? What the hell?!

Dick's hand emerged from his pocket to catch her by the arm, though, effectively stopping her in her tracks. He spoke quietly, but seriously, smiling kindly all the while though she wasn't really looking at him, "If he weren't on the other side of a dimensional wall."

Artemis blinked. The what-now?

Slowly she turned her head just enough to watch his face comfortably, her grip tightening around the flower in her hand.

"Dick…" she said, her voice low, the tone somewhere between a plea and a warning, like she wasn't sure which one she meant for it to be herself. But her eyes, dark and grey, were undoubtedly filled with a deep, desperate plea. _A 'dimensional wall'? _her thoughts were whirling. _What the hell does that even mean?! He's… 'stuck'? Like – in another dimension? Stuck, but…but **alive**? _"If this is some kind of joke…" she whispered faintly.

Dick's smile grew, a short delighted laugh escaping him. The faintest echo of his youthful exuberance bubbling to the fore again. "_Arty_," he implored. "I wouldn't kid. Not about _this_," he squeezed her arm, willing her to believe. "You _know_ that."

She blinked, and the tears she'd been hopelessly trying to hold back, slipped free, trailing down her cheeks.

"You're not…"

"I _found_ him, Arty," Dick said, his smile finally growing again, unable to keep his elation to himself. He wanted to her to know, to understand – to be _happy_, the same way he was.

She sobbed, unable not to, and clapped her free hand over her mouth.

Dick laughed again, and pulled her closer, wrapping his other arm around her shoulders. "You… he's… he's not—" she sobbed against his chest.

"No, he's not," Dick replied. "And I'm going to bring him all the way home. I promise."

Artemis's reply was a cross between a sob and a laugh.

Dick grinned, squeezing her tighter, "He says happy Valentine's Day, by the way."


End file.
